For All Your Reborning Supplies & Needs

The aim of this tutorial is show the basics
of using Air Dry Paints.

If you are worried about using your oven to dry
your paints or hubby objects to finding
an assortment of limbs and heads cooking away then there is an
alternative.

I have done
some extensive testing of these products and I am now satisfied that
they are up to the job and give as good a finish as heat set
paints. They dry naturally with no odours and are easy to use, although
they will obviously dry in the palette if you leave them too long to cook
dinner! (That's why I have some new palettes with lids) Another
advantage is that these paints do not react with plastics and tools and
brushes can be cleaned with soap and water. In addition to the basic
set of paints you will need a Sealer to seal the vinyl before
painting and the
Medium to use as a thinner, but this is no different to using
thinners with Heat Set Paint except it is odourless, mixes with
water and is non-flammable.

The kit I am
using is Robin, in this
instance I have just used the head as an example.

First we need to clean the vinyl to
get rid of any residue oils left after washing, I use an alcohol swab for this.
Then we need to seal the head using the Sealer mixed with the Medium
in equal parts. A pouncing sponge does this job well.

Using an alcohol swab to clean any oil residue from the vinyl
after washing.

Mixing the Sealer & Medium in equal parts.

Loading the pouncing sponge.

Pouncing the head.

Use a brush on ears and deeper crevices.

Allow to dry.

When the sealer is dry (approx. 30 mins.)
we can then add a Mint Base coat if required.Mix a pea
size blob of paint with the same amount of medium and water
to a milky consistency.

Pea size blob of paint.

Adding the medium and water and mixed to a milky
wash.

Applying the Mint-Base using a Large Pouncing
Sponge.

Pouncing out using a Cosmetic Foam Sponge.

Getting into the creases.

The head with mint-base
applied.

I like to use 2 coats of Mint-Base. We are now
ready to start painting our baby. After applying the flesh tones of
your choice(mixed the same way). We can then add veins using the
Pthalo Blue and a touch of Pthalo Green. Place a dab of each into
your palette then add the medium and water.

Again, pea sized blobs of paint
into the palette.

The medium has been added.

The water is then added and mixed
to a wash.

The veins are painted on.

We can now highlight the creases and folds
and add the mottling.

I use Burgundy and Burnt Umber for this stage.

The paint is mixed and ready to apply.

The creases and folds have been painted using brush & foam wedge.

Loading the Natural Sea Sponge for
mottling technique.

Add a little at a time.

Soaking up the excess paint using a Cosmetic Foam Wedge.

Our head is now ready for
fine detailing.

The head is now ready for fine
detailing.

The completed and varnished head.

The Matt Varnish should be applied very
lightly using

a large pouncing sponge.

I have used Aleene's Baby Tears to
moisten the mouth & nose.

You can still use your Genesis 3D
Medium on the eyebrows.

As you can see Air Dry Paints can
give just the same life-like qualities as Heat Set Paint,
although I have had to be a little heavy handed for the benefit of
the camera.

All tools and paints used are
available on the Lillian Trigg web-site.

I hope this has been of use to you,
Linda...

Q. Why add Medium and not just water?

A. The Medium I supply adds transparency and allows the paint to
retain its' adhesion qualities without diluting the colour. I
would not recommend water alone for applying to vinyl.

Q. How long does the paint take to dry?

A. The paint dries very quickly and is completely dry within 24
hrs. But curing of the paint is essential and will take 2 weeks to
cure completely.

Q. Can I use heat to dry the paint faster?

A. Yes. I use my heat gun for areas where I want to speed up the
process but you could also use a hairdryer if you don't have a heat
gun.

Q. When can I root my baby's hair?

A. I normally leave for week after varnishing, then start the
rooting process.

Q. What if my baby looks shiny after applying the sealer?

A. You can thin the sealer down more by adding a tad more water.
However, once the painting is complete and Matt Varnish is applied
the shine will go completely.

Q. Can I still use Genesis Matt Varnish?

A. Yes, you can. Use just as you would when using Genesis Heat
Set Paints.

Q. Can I still use Genesis 3D (Thick) Medium for my eyebrows
etc.?

A. Yes you can, before varnishing. I usually use a heatgun for this as I
never put vinyl in the oven, but only as a matter of preference.

Q. Can I intermix the Air Dry Paints?

A. Yes just mix the colours together to make the colour of your
choice. It's good to experiment!

Q. When I use other Matt Varnishes they dry with a sheen? Is yours
any different?

A. I started playing with Air Dry Paints and varnishes months ago
and after making many errors and using different products (all non
toxic) . I am now happy with these results and believe these
particular paints and varnishes to be a terrific
alternative to Heat Set Paints.

Q. Can I remove the paint after it has "cured"?

A. Yes, you can remove Air Dry Paints the same way as with Heat
Set Paints, that is with
Acetone. This will remove all traces of paint leaving you with a
completely reusable kit.

Shake the bottle
well before use. I use a tiny amount of Matt varnish in my palette and with a
brush apply a couple of brush strokes to a large pouncing sponge,
dab the pouncing sponge on to a piece of kitchen towel to
remove any excess, then pounce over a small area - repeating until
the varnish is just a very thin covering (you can also use a
cosmetic sponge to go over the area). Everything has to be applied
in very thin layers. A second coat may be added if required. 24 hrs.
is required between coats.